Seattle Back to Business Program

The South Carolina Research Authority (SCRA) Member Companies may apply for a variety of non-dilutive grants, each with its own eligibility and review criteria. The objective of the Startup Grant is to provide early-stage funding to startups to support one or more critical milestones towards commercialization and to advance the company’s pursuit of follow-on funding. Startup Grants provide funding up to $25,000.

The Rural Jump-Start Program is a collaborative effort by the state, local governments, Institutes of Higher Education (IHE), and economic development organizations (EDO) to incentivize new businesses to start in or move to rural, economically distressed counties in Colorado, which are referred to as Rural Jump-Start zones, and hire new employees. Rural Jump-Start began in 2016 as a tax incentive program for businesses located in a Rural Jump-Start zone, and in 2021 a grant program was created. If you are a business interested in participating in this program, please review all program qualifications, discussed in greater detail under the Business Eligibility section below, before applying.

The BGV Pitch program flips the traditional pitch experience on its head: we coach entrepreneurs, host a live crowdfunded pitch competition, and connect you to community and professionals to support you on your journey. We democratize funding by allowing the audience to vote with their dollars using our Raisify platform for the founders whose pitch they favor. Each founder has 3 minutes to pitch, followed by a 2-minute Q&A with the audience. Winners will receive cash prizes ranging from $5,000 to $15,000, access to the BGV Connect Incubator, and a network of business owners and investors.

The Clackamas County Tourism Business Grant Program provides Clackamas County tourism-related businesses with grants of up to $100,000 to fund projects that help them grow and enhance the visitor experience. Administered by the Clackamas County Office of Economic Development in partnership with the Office of Tourism, the program is a one-time, $1 million initiative structured around two funding tracks of $500,000 each: a Small Business Acceleration Track, which supports capital investments, physical improvements, and workforce development projects for small tourism businesses; and a Technical & Professional Services Track, which supports more established businesses with projects requiring specialized expertise to remove barriers to growth. Eligible applicants must operate a tourism-related business located in Clackamas County, defined as one whose products, services, or operations contribute to the local travel and tourism economy and that appeals to visitors traveling from 50 or more miles away. The Small Business Acceleration Track is open to either existing small businesses (registered for 2+ years with 10 or fewer employees) or early-stage ventures (registered for less than 3 years with 3 or fewer employees including founders), and requires a minimum 25% match of total project cost. National franchises and chains are not eligible, except for lodging businesses. Funds may be used for capital investment (equipment, software, physical assets), physical improvements (property upgrades, expansion, new locations), or workforce projects (staff training, new permanent hires, converting part-time to full-time roles), with all projects required to demonstrably improve visitor experience or accessibility.

The Small Business Construction Mitigation Grant supports businesses in Salt Lake City that have been negatively impacted by nearby construction sites. Eligible independent merchants in the restaurant, retail, and bar spaces can get grants of $3,000 to put toward rent/mortgage, marketing, business improvements, and more.